


I'm Not So Scared Anymore

by wayfared



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: And thunderstorms, Fluff, M/M, PURE fluff i'm not even joking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-03
Updated: 2014-08-03
Packaged: 2018-02-11 13:08:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2069397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wayfared/pseuds/wayfared
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Louis is afraid of thunderstorms and Harry can't sleep anyway.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I'm Not So Scared Anymore

**Author's Note:**

> this was the first ever fan fiction I wrote from two years ago (holy shit). it was originally posted on my [tumblr](http://www.femlouis.tumblr.com), but i've finally decided to move it over here to have everything in one place! i hope u guys still enjoy it!!!

This was ridiculous, so ridiculous. He was a grown man, almost twenty-one, there was absolutely no reason for him to afraid. Maybe a little scared, but Louis was downright ashamed to be curled up in the corner of his bedroom, swathed in a fleece blanket and trying his hardest not to shake. The room was dark, pitch black apart from the all too often recurring flashes of bright yellow. Louis fought back a whimper as he huddled back against the wall, eyes squeezed shut as if that would will away the thunder and lightening. He jumped as another round rolled overhead, the booming vicious and the only thoughts running through Louis' head were how this was the night he was going to die, alone and curled up like a baby. He almost rolled his eyes but was cut off by the squeal forcing his way out of the back of his throat as more light illuminated the space between his eyeballs and eyelids.

He was a sorry sight, he really was. Louis' usually perfect hair stuck out in odd angles, dry tears tracked down his cheeks(involuntarily of course), and his lower lip quivered constantly in his attempt to hold back his fright. If anyone walked in on him right now, they would for sure laugh and point and say _wow what a baby you are._ But Louis was not a baby. He was old, almost old enough to legally drink in America!, and it was absolutely not his fault he had a particularly strong fear of storms. Everyone had a fear right? Some people were this afraid of spiders, or lions, or tight spaces or-

Another roll of thunder noisily passed, more severe than the one before. Louis jumped from his place, hand flying the opposite way and accidentally smacking against the hard wall. He let out a whimper as the pain stemmed down his arm. Damn that hurt.

And not a second passed before the lightening cracked, spilling through his window. Louis' eyes were opened just enough to catch his messy bed, various band posters clinging to the wall, and an award sitting contently on the nightstand. The trees shook outside his window, some branches smacking the glass and Louis totally did not just witness a dark figure outlined in the yellow. He yelped at the sight, and immediately clawed at the wall he sat against as if that would help him gather more distance. Okay, he was imagining that figure, but it didn't help the fact that Louis shook down to his core, sobs threatening their way up his throat and limbs quivering. That was the last straw.

It only took him a second to consider his final option, the only answer he could come up with was asking _why_ he hadn't thought of it before. Really, it's not like there were any boundaries between him and his best mate. Sure, they were only mates but that never stopped the two from cuddling on the couch and Louis could remember countless times of falling asleep in the same bad anyway. Tonight couldn't be any different, especially when you counted the fact that there was a huge storm going on and Louis was deathly afraid of huge storms. Maybe Harry wasn't in the mood, but surely his friend's distraught character would be a thing to consider here.

Shakily, Louis pulled himself off the carpet and through the door and down the hallway between clashes, but had to stop right outside Harry's door when another round of thunder interrupted his quickened pace. There's no stopping the loud squeal that escaped the back of his throat and Louis hopes that Harry didn't hear that through the door. They might be friends but it's not like he wanted to act like a scaredy-cat in front of _anyone._

Though seeing as he was scared enough to want someone to tell him not to be this badly the squealing probably didn't add any effect. And before he could scold himself into turning back and forgetting he was ever frightened at all the lightening came and more bile rose up in his throat and Louis couldn't think as he threw open Harry's door and stood in the entrance, eyes screwed shut. The flash faded slowly enough for Louis to open his eyes a crack and catch sight of the signature chocolate curls splattered out on one of the five pillows lying about. Harry rolled over in the bed and sat up on his elbows, taking in the odd boy wrapped in a baby blue blanket and covering his face with his hands.

“Louis?” the small voice called out over the expanse of the room, the distance between the door and the boy all of a sudden seeming much too great for Louis to handle.

“Yeah?” He tried hard to disguise the obvious distraught tone, but his friend caught it immediately.

“Louis, are you alright?”

“I'm perfectly fine.” But they both knew Harry was too smart for that, hell he wasn't stupid enough to take that lie seeing as the caramel-haired boy was shaking so badly he could still capture it in the dark.

“Are you... are you scared?” There was a bit of a laugh following it and Louis hoped he couldn't see the furious blush already unfolding across his cheeks.

“No, definitely not,” he retorted, though the small, broken tone said otherwise.

Another giggle ran through the air and Harry flopped back down on his bed and patted the spot beside him. “I didn't know you were so deathly afraid of thunderstorms.”

Louis shuffled his way over and almost forgot to mumble “I'm not!” as he let his old blanket fall to the floor and gratefully crawled under the covers, coming as close to Harry as possible without touching him.

“You are,” Harry argued, his voice a gentle whisper with an edge of laughter at the thought.

“Shut up!” Louis blushed again and hid his face with a pillow, not wanting his mate to see what a mess he was. The argument ended, however, when the next bang clapped overhead, almost shuddering the window panes and petrifying Louis against the sheets.

“Don't be scared,” Harry murmured, reaching over a hand and running a hand through his hair. The contact made him shiver but he was thankful, it was also really warm. Louis didn't answer him, trying his hardest not to witness the inevitable lightening that would fill the room in a matter of seconds. It did and to Louis' dismay Harry didn't even flinch, obviously too dignified to let this sort of stuff get to him. Instead the curly haired boy smiled a warm smile and wrapped a strong arm around his friend's waist, gently pulling him into an awkward hug of sorts. But it was comforting and again Louis was thankful.

They were silent for a few moments as Harry stroked Louis' back underneath the covers and tried to soothe his panicking nerves. A few _shhhs_ were whispered and gradually the older boy felt his muscles relax and he honestly truly felt safe right then, enclosed in his best friend's rather warm arms.

It wasn't long before the following thunder and lightening occurred, and when Louis jumped Harry only responded with hugging him tighter, closing the space between them until Louis was breathing into Harry's chest and Harry was resting his head atop Louis'. Louis noticed that Harry wasn't wearing anything but his boxers but he couldn't bring himself to care and drop the comfortable position, for he was much too warm to let go of and Louis was finally calming down.

“When I was really young,” Harry mumbled between booms, his long fingers still absentmindedly creating patterns on the other boy's back, “my mum always told me that thunderstorms were big cloud men having bowling matches.” Louis smiled into Harry's chest at the thought, picturing huge lumps of clouds trying to throw bowling balls down a grey cloudy track. “And she said that every time there was thunder it only meant that the bowling ball was going down the lane.”

“What about the lightening?” Louis asked, his voice somewhat muffled. He felt Harry's jaw move slightly as he grinned.

“The lightening is whenever one of the cloud men makes a strike.”

A giggle let its way through Louis' lips before he could stop it. “So every time?”

“Cloud men are exceptionally good bowlers.” This earned another chuckle from Louis and Louis decided that this was one of the best decisions he's made so far this week. Not only was he being comforted but Harry was just so warm and glowing and he got a nice story and on second thought the thunder didn't seem so bad after all. Not when this could happen.

“Is that why you're not afraid Haz?”

“Sometimes I am afraid. Though right now I'm not, not with you here Lou.” And Louis could sense another smile taking place on Harry's lips and he instantly agreed with that statement.

“Thanks Harry,” he whispered.

“Do you feel better?” Harry queried, moving his arm from Louis' waist and beginning to run his fingers through the older boy's messy hair, smoothing it down.

“A bit, yeah.”

“That's good.”

There was more silence but neither of them minded, rather liking it as they listened to the roars of thunder and Louis grew less and less scared with each one, instead focusing on the fact he could hear Harry's heartbeat. It was quite nice, slow paced and Louis decided that fit Harry. Harry was always somewhat of a slow paced person, not that he minded. Louis liked listening to the tranquilizing drawl of his words as he talked and he liked watching and feeling the calm movements – even the smallest ones – that he made and overall he just liked Harry. He was reassuring and nice and Louis thought this was certainly the fiftieth time in the last ten minutes that the word _warm_ passed through his mind. Not that he was bothered by it though, it was rather well to have something to think about other than the ongoing thunderstorm. It was Curly's fault anyway, he was just so damn distracting.

“Still scared?” Harry asked again, breaking the quiet for only a moment.

Louis pursed his lips, concluding that no, maybe he wasn't scared. “Not with you here,” was what he muttered back. They were out of his mouth before he realized but he didn't particularly mind. Sure they were a little past platonic but certainly Harry was also wondering why their legs slotted together so well or whether Louis smelled nice or not and in the end it didn't matter and it was in the middle of a storm, for heaven's sake. Louis was allowed to be a little wonky. He thought earlier to the fact that there were generally no boundaries between the pair anyway.

“Good,” Harry replied and pressed a small kiss on his mate's forehead. A flutter ran its way through Louis' stomach and he snaked his arm around Harry's back and pulled as close as possible, face nestled into his bare chest but away from the thunder and that was enough.

More quietness, and Louis felt his eyelids getting droopy and it was definitely time to fall asleep. He yawned, curled up as tight as possible against his friend and let himself succumb to darkness, finally truly forgetting the thunder and lightening and instead imagining him and Harry up there in the clouds bowling beside their huge cloud man buddies.

“Louis?” Harry whispered just as Louis was lulled into sleep. He grunted in reply, not expecting any answer to that grunt but he felt Harry shift in his hair and plant another small kiss against it. “I love you Lou bear.”

The words sent a chill up Louis' spine and he more than liked them. He liked the way they sounded as they left Harry's mouth and the way it sent his heart spinning and Louis found himself questioning why exactly they did. He didn't press on the issue though, on the verge of sleep and warm all over in his little Harry cocoon. Louis only answered the best way he could think of, and somewhere deep inside him he hoped the curly haired boy felt the same zinging sensation zip up his back as he repeated the sentence back to him. “Love you too Hazza.”

And with that they were asleep, a tangled mess of limbs and sheets and forgotten fears and both were very, very comfortable.


End file.
